Over 200 prominent artists, scholars, and critics signed an open letter entreating New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMa) and its board member Larry Fink to end their investments in private prison companies. Protesters gathered outside the Museum of Modern Art (MoMa) in New York to call on its board member Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, to divest themselves from private prison companies.

About 150 protesters managed to disrupt an exclusive preview party hosted by the museum of to celebrate the reopening of its $450 million refurbished galleries.

The private discussion, which included both prominent and emerging artists and museum leaders, took place in the wake of protests and petitions from artists who have alleged that their work has been censored by the image-sharing platform, which is owned by Facebook.

The painting, simply titled “Christine”, is of Christine Davis, an American hairstylist who moved to Lagos with her British husband and struck up a friendship with the painter. “Christine” was completed in 1971.

“You end up in such a suffocating situation, not knowing who to tell or what to do, or to hand over,” he said. “And of course afraid that the Dutch government might confiscate it.” But with the end of the former regime and the election of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed last year, Mr Sirak felt the time was right to have a piece of Ethiopia’s history return to Addis Ababa.

A Paris Artist Colony For Exiled Refugees Forced To Look For A New Home. After being forced by Paris City Hall to leave its Montmartre studio in June L’Atelier des Artistes en Exile moved into a 3,200-square-foot space to support about 200 exiled artists from around the world. Now, it will have to vacate its current location in December. It has no idea where it will go next.

A fourth memorial for Emmett Till has been mounted in Mississippi at the bank of the river where the murdered boy’s body was retrieved. Three prior signs had been vandalized — two shot at, and one thrown in the river. But this time, it’s bulletproof. “These markers are part of a moral responsibility that our community owes to the Till family,” said Patrick Weems, co-founder of the Emmett Till Interpretive Center. “It’s our sacred oath to keep these markers up, and to continue to tell the truth about what took place in our community.”

Shyllon, a Yoruba prince of Ake in Abeokuta, south-west Nigeria, says he wanted to give the museum “global impact” by offering the best works from the 7,000-strong collection of his Omooba Yemisi Adedoyin Shyllon Art Foundation, created in 2007. These range from traditional works of pre-colonial Nigeria to 20th-century paintings by Ben Enwonwu, wood carvings by Lamidi Fakeye and a wall-hanging sculpture by Ghana’s El Anatsui. The collection also includes photographs documenting Nigeria’s disappearing cultural festivals.

Sharon Watson, Artistic Director Of The UK’s Phoenix Dance Theatre was named Arts and Media Leader of the Year, at The Black British Business Awards annual awards ceremony in London. | Black Art & Design